Good Lord, you say cables don't make a difference?

mono price...

ok, i have to ask this as mike is so upset that it seems to me that regardless of the outcome with tom, i have a feeling tha mike will not make it to future carverfests if this keeps up..truly sad. regardless of who is right or wrong as i got the impression that they really liked each other as tom spoke highly of mike when mike and i meet in 2010. what the hell happened is beyond me and i agree, let the soap opera continue in the fight club if it must. maybe james can move these posts there on a seperate thread, because in the end, if they did not give a shit for each other from the start, this would not be anywhere near the blown out of proportion that it has gotten to. a real shame, as both guys are very knowedgeable on the subject of cables, and i would have sworn that mike was telling me about a guy that has more degrees than a thermometer in what i would call cable audio science as i forget at the moment what the guys job was, but it had to do with high end cables. with that also said, i could have sworn that mike was on the same page as tom as it refered to high end cables. but obviously i am wrong on that. maybe it was tom that had that audio friend in high places in the cable world. so in the end i agree with nikki, lets make some cake and eat up....

OK, I have read this entire thread and learned alot. I wont dare tell anybody what kind of speaker cable Im running right now.

So I have a question. I moved my cables from the "fixed" to "variable" position on the back of my 490t CDP and noticed a big difference in sound.

Is this possible or am I hearing things??

[quote="MRHP"]So I have a question. I moved my cables from the "fixed" to "variable" position on the back of my 490t CDP and noticed a big difference in sound.

Is this possible or am I hearing things??[/quote

When I had my 490t, I had it through the variable first (to use the 490t's remote as a volume control) until I found a remote for my TGP1, then I moved it to fixed, and don't recall any change.

I just tested the same with my 390t and don't hear a difference.

OK, I have read this entire thread and learned alot. I wont dare tell anybody what kind of speaker cable Im running right now.

So I have a question. I moved my cables from the "fixed" to "variable" position on the back of my 490t CDP and noticed a big difference in sound.

Is this possible or am I hearing things??

Is it a quality difference, a volume difference, or both?

Make sure you have the volume with the variable output at max, so in theory there should be no volume difference between the fixed and variable outputs when listening to both.

Is it a quality difference, a volume difference, or both?

...only volume as the variable lets you adjust the output via the knob on the front. Both positions run through the tubes. The optical input bypasses the tube section.

I thought one of them (fixed or variable) bypassed the tube section....?

I thought one of them (fixed or variable) bypassed the tube section....?

I think using the digital out bypasses the tube section, but should not bypass it if using the RCA out regardless if you're using the fixed or variable out.

No volume level control if using the digital out.

I thought one of them (fixed or variable) bypassed the tube section....?

Nope...

OK, I have read this entire thread and learned alot. I wont dare tell anybody what kind of speaker cable Im running right now.

So I have a question. I moved my cables from the "fixed" to "variable" position on the back of my 490t CDP and noticed a big difference in sound.

Is this possible or am I hearing things??

very possible as the volume knob adds another set of op amps after the potentiometer knob. though it should not be a night and day difference. suttle at best. otherwise, there is an issue.

It was a quality difference that I heard. I know swaping preamps can make a difference in sound. Just thinking about using the CDP as a preamp even though it runs thru a CT-6 preamp.

After listening again its not as much difference as I first thought.

OK, let's see.... How ya'll like my cables?

Nothing wrong with them at all. Have you by chance ever tried other types of cables in your various rigs?

Been reading this thread since Tom first started it. As a some of you know I got laid off, and I've been making speaker cables and interconnect cables for awhile now. What amazes me is how just the least little change in a cable make up can make a difference in what I hear. YES, Cables DO make a difference. I equate the differences to one of my favorite things, food. Just as a hamburger, fries and drink from McD's can fill you up, using Lowes zip cord cable with run of the mill gold plated brass banana connectors, can get the job done. But, to me grilling up some wonderful fillets, with baked potatoes, a great Cabernet to go with it, and enjoying that dinner with good friends, is so much better. The same holds true with the audio system. Change from one component to another, and BAM! the sound changes, for better or worse. The difference between listening to a CD on my Sony 300 cd changer, and listening to that same CD on the OPPO BDP 83SE, to me anyway, is like the difference between night and day. The same holds true with your cables. The whole idea is to get a signal from it's source to it's destination, and do so without changing anything. Ain't gonna happen! Anything placed between the source and what you are connecting it to changes things. The make up of cables can change the sound you hear from your system, just as spices change the way food tastes. Take those zip cord cables. Yeah, they got the job done, but make those cables with good quality copper wire, with silver plated copper connectors, and to my ears, cleans up the sound, making the bass more full and tight, plus giving the higher frequencies a little more clarity. Lifts that veil everyone talks about! There are so many kinds of wire, everything from plain old copper zip cord, all the way up to silver. Then there is the size of the wire, the resistance, capacitance, inductance, and so many ways wire is made, from solid, to high strand count, and the exotics made from individual multi size wires. Then there are the connectors. Pot metal, brass, copper, gold plating, silver plating, rhodium plating, and each one is like a different spice. There are so many different combinations that can make the least little difference in what you hear. And each system is different. What sounds good on my system might not sound as good on yours! Tom has been auditioning many different cables over the years, and has found some good and some not so good in his systems. IMHO, that's part of the fun, trying new cables to see what works best in your system. Also, to me anyway, making the cables is at least half the fun! Take a look at http://www.douglasconnection.com if you are interested in doing a DIY cable project, or custom made cables. Having a 15% off sale through the end of Feb. plus an additional 5% off for CarverAudio.com folks. PM me for the coupon code for that extra 5% off. YES CABLES DO MAKE A DIFFERENCE!

Nothing wrong with them at all. Have you by chance ever tried other types of cables in your various rigs?

Heh heh heh...just checking to see if you were awake

I have tried a few, I have a couple pairs of Anti-Cables, 2.5 sets of Carver Audio cables, a pair of Kimber and some home made Belden wire. So far I am liking the Belden cables.

I am going to order some from Doug in a couple weeks. So far my focus has been on getting the components I need for various places, house, garage, etc.

Once I get the system and speaker combos I like I have going to probably try a few different cables to see what I like. This part will take a long time because I like to listen for a while before i decide if somethings right. No real science to it, it will either click or it won't.

As I start finalizing systems and deciding on the cable, I'll order specific lengths to try to reduce the cable clutter.

Then will be onto tube rolling, I pretty much have stock tubes in all my systems, except for the Kit 1, I put some Black Treasures in that. Although that strategy isn't working, I've already had to order 16 Mullards for the Carverfest amps and I ordered some JAN-Philips 6922 Low Noise to try in one of my DACs. It also looks like I need a pair of 12AX7's sooner than later to replace the tubes in my L2 preamp to remedy the slight tube noise I am hearing.

Vey nice site Doug--how do you like the Vampire power cable?